Mike Davis

[nafsder2007]

jami3406 said:

Davis is better off as someone's assistant, where he gets to do all the recruiting. Knock him all you want as a coach, but he's a good recruiter. True, he couldn't get Josh McRoberts or Greg Oden, but he was able to get guys like Bracey Wright. He'd probably have better luck at Missouri where he's not expected to get every state recruit to sign with him like at Indiana.

Knight never got all the in-state stars either. He was notorious for passing up in-state star players in favor of coachable players. The guys he got to play at IU weren't superstars before they came, and they didn't go on to become superstars after they left. But while they were there, they became talented players.

Mike Davis didn't get McRoberts, Oden, or May, but he did get Robert Vaden and AJ Ratliff from in state, and he focused a lot of his recruiting to the South where he actually had some pull...he got guys like Bracey Wright from Texas (a player that Knight probably never would have recruited) and DJ White from Alabama.

[bearcat]

jami3406 said:

Davis is better off as someone's assistant, where he gets to do all the recruiting. Knock him all you want as a coach, but he's a good recruiter. True, he couldn't get Josh McRoberts or Greg Oden, but he was able to get guys like Bracey Wright. He'd probably have better luck at Missouri where he's not expected to get every state recruit to sign with him like at Indiana.

Expectations are going to be pretty low next year in Columbia anyways, especially since Thomas Gardner has threatened to jump to the NBA, and Jason Horton might transfer. We could use some guys like DJ White or Vaden, but we would have to wait a year while they sit out per transfer rules.

[hoosier]

tbbearcat5 said:

Expectations are going to be pretty low next year in Columbia anyways, especially since Thomas Gardner has threatened to jump to the NBA, and Jason Horton might transfer. We could use some guys like DJ White or Vaden, but we would have to wait a year while they sit out per transfer rules.

Which is why I think this is probably the dumbest thing DJ could do. He's already lost a year because of his injuries, now he wants to sit out another year and pout because his coach can't get the job done at one of college basketball's most historic programs? Yeah, good luck with that, big guy. The scouts are probably gonna forget about him.

[sep]

Funny article in the Des Moines Register today about Alford.

"There are better coaches out there. That's what gets lost in all this. And we're not talking slightly better, as in: Frank Sinatra sang a ballad slightly better than Dean Martin. We're talking much better, as in: Frank Sinatra sang a ballad much better than Kid Rock.

There are much better coaches available to Indiana University right now than Steve Alford. Heck, Alford wasn't even the best coach at Williams Arena on Saturday."

Then it goes on to say..

"The Hawkeyes played not to lose. They looked tight. Anxious. The Gophers played hard. Aggressive. Smart. That's coaching. Saturday's debacle is required viewing for any pundit who's still convinced that Alford is the Hoosiers' savior-in-waiting. The only thing funnier than watching these ESPN types stumbling over their microphone cords after the Alford-to-Indiana story is watching them try to defend the man's record in Iowa City.

Host: "Nine games under .500 in the Big Ten, Doug."
Analyst: "Well, he was just unlucky."
Host: "Two NCAA Tournament trips in six seasons, Doug."
Analyst: "Hey, he's still Steve Alford."
Host: "How much do we pay you again, Doug?"

Remarkable, a silver sense broke through the clatter late last Friday night. During a panel discussion on one of ESPN's studio shows, former Vermont coach Tom Brennan, now a talking head, was asked: "If you were Indiana's athletic director, would you hire Alford at Indiana?"

"No, the ex-coach replied, not so much as batting an eyelid.

"Why not?"
Because there are better (guys) out there."
Hallelujah. It's not a short list, either. Start with Marquette's Tom Crean who has Tom Izzo pedigree and already has reached the Final Four. Or Mike Anderson, who's taken Alabama-Birmingham to the Sweet 16. Mark Few at Gonzaga. Dana Altman at Creighton. You could try to poach Florida's Billy Donovan, Wake Forest's Skip Prosser or Thad Matta, who's threatening to build a dynasty at Ohio State."

This makes me very sad, that Alford may not leave Iowa now.

[Jami]

hoosier said:

tbbearcat5 said:

Expectations are going to be pretty low next year in Columbia anyways, especially since Thomas Gardner has threatened to jump to the NBA, and Jason Horton might transfer. We could use some guys like DJ White or Vaden, but we would have to wait a year while they sit out per transfer rules.

Which is why I think this is probably the dumbest thing DJ could do. He's already lost a year because of his injuries, now he wants to sit out another year and pout because his coach can't get the job done at one of college basketball's most historic programs? Yeah, good luck with that, big guy. The scouts are probably gonna forget about him.

Isn't he eligible for a medical redshirt?

[hoosier]

jami3406 said:

Isn't he eligible for a medical redshirt?

He is, but he's still going to end up sitting for two years... one for the medical redshirt, and one for the transfer year. He won't fulfill his four years of eligibility, anyway.

[bearcat]

sepsportsfanatic said:

Funny article in the Des Moines Register today about Alford.

"There are better coaches out there. That's what gets lost in all this. And we're not talking slightly better, as in: Frank Sinatra sang a ballad slightly better than Dean Martin. We're talking much better, as in: Frank Sinatra sang a ballad much better than Kid Rock.

There are much better coaches available to Indiana University right now than Steve Alford. Heck, Alford wasn't even the best coach at Williams Arena on Saturday."

Then it goes on to say..

"The Hawkeyes played not to lose. They looked tight. Anxious. The Gophers played hard. Aggressive. Smart. That's coaching. Saturday's debacle is required viewing for any pundit who's still convinced that Alford is the Hoosiers' savior-in-waiting. The only thing funnier than watching these ESPN types stumbling over their microphone cords after the Alford-to-Indiana story is watching them try to defend the man's record in Iowa City.

Host: "Nine games under .500 in the Big Ten, Doug."
Analyst: "Well, he was just unlucky."
Host: "Two NCAA Tournament trips in six seasons, Doug."
Analyst: "Hey, he's still Steve Alford."
Host: "How much do we pay you again, Doug?"

Remarkable, a silver sense broke through the clatter late last Friday night. During a panel discussion on one of ESPN's studio shows, former Vermont coach Tom Brennan, now a talking head, was asked: "If you were Indiana's athletic director, would you hire Alford at Indiana?"

"No, the ex-coach replied, not so much as batting an eyelid.

"Why not?"
Because there are better (guys) out there."
Hallelujah. It's not a short list, either. Start with Marquette's Tom Crean who has Tom Izzo pedigree and already has reached the Final Four. Or Mike Anderson, who's taken Alabama-Birmingham to the Sweet 16. Mark Few at Gonzaga. Dana Altman at Creighton. You could try to poach Florida's Billy Donovan, Wake Forest's Skip Prosser or Thad Matta, who's threatening to build a dynasty at Ohio State."

This makes me very sad, that Alford may not leave Iowa now.

Remember that Brunner, Horner, and Haluska are all gone next year. Alford or no, Iowa's looking at a down season next year anyways.